Adaptable offense keeps Nazareth football team rolling

The graduation of quarterback Dan Harding, the 2011 Pennsylvania Class 4A co-player of the year, deprived Nazareth of the Lehigh Valley Conference's most accurate passer.

The departure of three of Harding's top four targets — Adam Bridgeforth, Andrew Bridgeforth and Dan Shepherd — left the Blue Eagles with more unknowns on offense.

Yet three weeks into the 2012 high school football season, LVC defenses are left to answer the same question — how can the Blue Eagles be slowed?

The adaptability of Nazareth's spread offense has kept it humming despite the roster turnover the Blue Eagles (3-0 overall, 2-0 LVC) endured. After filling the air with footballs last season, they are dominating defenses with the legs of senior quarterback Parish Simmons and sophomore running back Jordan Gray. Those two have combined for 981 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns, giving Whitehall (2-1, 2-0) plenty to prepare for as it travels to Andrew S. Leh Stadium (7 tonight) for the marquee matchup of Week 4.

Gray was a known commodity heading into this year after rushing for 1,667 yards as a freshman. Simmons has been a revelation to fans outside of Nazareth, providing a dual threat at quarterback. He ranks second in the league in rushing yards and fourth in passing yards even though he has thrown the ball only 38 times.

"I just think we've been trying to do the things he's good at," Nazareth coach Rob Melosky said Wednesday evening. "He's waited his turn to put his own stamp on the program, and I think he's done a good job with that the first three weeks of the season.

"I think what makes him an impact runner is he has the ability to find a crease," he added. "He's not necessarily blazing fast. But when he gets into the open field, he's so fluid and effortless. He's got a real long stride."

Whitehall coach Brian Gilbert said he could not recall seeing a zone-read quarterback like Simmons during his time involved with the LVC. So what will the Zephyrs and defensive coordinator Mike Yadush cook up to try to slow Nazareth? That will provide the most interesting subplot to the matchup.

Whitehall had a ton of trouble with Gray last season, when he ran for 250 yards in a Week 9 win that gave Nazareth a share of the LVC title. Two years ago, the Zephyrs shut down LVC rushing leader Chuck Dibilio in a Districts 2-4-11 Class 4A semifinal, earning a 21-6 win.

Nazareth, of course, won't be afraid to throw the ball should it find Whitehall stacking too many players in the box. Simmons is averaging 10.7 yards per pass attempt and has thrown five touchdowns without getting picked off.

Whitehall has already faced one top quarterback-running back combination in Spring-Ford's Hank Coyne and Jarred Jones. The Zephyrs lost to the Rams in Week 1, but this game means more since they can maintain a share of the LVC lead.

"We've got to make sure we've got people accounted for the quarterback and for the running back," Gilbert said. "When you face a team like Liberty [that runs the flexbone], you've got to be sound because they can give it, pitch it, or the quarterback can keep it. With Nazareth, you've got to go two-way threat and account for both of those guys.

"And then part of their offense is to throw it out to those receivers too if you're sleeping on them. It's a very well-designed offense. It's why they're averaging 50 points per game."

WHERE'S THE RUNNING ROOM?

While Nazareth has romped over teams with its ground game, Northampton and Liberty have struggled to establish rushing attacks. They are the only LVC teams that don't have a player with 100 rushing yards through three weeks.

Northampton doesn't yet have 100 rushing yards as a team. The Konkrete Kids have run 83 times for 92 yards.

"We struggle a little bit to run the football because we're not real strong up front," Northampton coach Jeff Brosky said. "But our passing game has been pretty good thus far against some pretty good competition."

Brosky said junior running back Jared Bauer, a special-teams standout, could see additional time in the backfield this week. Bauer has carried the ball three times this season.

Putting Bauer in the backfield could also allow Northampton to take advantage of leading rusher Brandon Heimbach's pass-catching skills. Heimbach has 13 catches through three weeks, including 10 last week against Parkland.

Liberty has found more success on the ground than Northampton but would still like to see improvement. The Hurricanes, who lost all but one starter from last year's dominant rushing offense, are averaging 97.7 rushing yards per game and 4.2 yards per carry. They averaged 7.8 yards per carry and 328.3 yards per game last season.

Liberty has thrown the ball with more potency this season, taking advantage of wideouts K.J. Williams and Boise Ross. The Hurricanes are averaging 176.3 passing yards per game and have thrown six touchdowns without a pick.